The relationship between you and your real estate agent is unlike most working relationships people establish—and understanding why the difference is important can be useful when you go to buy or sell a property in Upper Marlboro.
For openers, working with a real estate agent is a hybrid kind of situation. Although you do ‘hire’ your agent—and that agent is “working for you”—there is also an element of partnership involved. This is no mere technical abstraction.
If you have ever run any kind of business, you know the difference between having an employee and having a partner. A good employee performs the tasks assigned, is compensated in accordance with that performance, and goes home at the end of the day to enjoy the fruits of their labor. A partner, on the other hand, does everything that an employee does, but a lot more, too. For one thing, a partner usually has ‘skin in the game’—has accepted some of the risk that every private enterprise involves. As compensation, a partner looks forward to a share of the profits should the business succeed.
If you are selling your home, you certainly have a lot of skin in the game! It’s your property that’s up for sale, and your investment in it is major. Your agent will be co-venturing in the sale—not only contributing the time and effort that’s required, but also accepting the risk of your mutual sales enterprise. When you think about it, you stand to benefit from the significant ongoing cost of operating a busy real estate office, developing and distributing marketing materials, advertising your home, and putting in as many hours of work as it takes to complete the sale. It’s your ‘partner’ (the agent and the agent’s broker) who will bear those expenses.
If you are going to buy a home, the relationship is similar. Whether in the office or out on the road, your real estate agent will absorb the cost incurred in helping you seek your next home. If a sale doesn’t come to pass for any reason, your ‘partner’ agent accepts the risk that there won’t be a payday at all. It’s a powerful motivation to work hard on your behalf.
The unique nature of the relationship you step into when you team with a real estate agent in is one that’s developed over centuries. For your agent, in addition to the degree of independence that’s built in, there’s one extra benefit that has a value beyond money. At the end of the day, it’s the reward of seeing a client’s family moving into their new home, or be handed the buyer’s check at the final closing. Feeling the glow of having helped make that kind of major difference is truly priceless!
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